Mrs. O Sparkles in Naeem Khan
Tuesday, November 24, 2009 at 7:08 PM 
Image by Nicolas Kamm / Getty Images
Image by Nicolas Kamm / Getty Images
Official White House Photo / Pete Souza
First Lady Mrs. O has debuted her ensemble for the state dinner, wearing a gown by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan. The strapless gown features hand cut sterling silver sequins sewn on champagne silk chiffon, which create an abstract floral pattern. The dress is entirely handmade, requiring three weeks of work by 40 people, completed in Naeem Khan's family workshop in India. The custom, one-of-a-kind gown was made by the designer with the theme of Mrs. O's first state dinner in mind. The evening honors the stateside visit of Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and his wife, Gursharan Kaur.
Mrs. O accessorized her ensemble with oversize Bochic drop earrings, featuring a fleur de lis at each ear and tear drop shapes made of gold and purple stones. Mrs. O completed the look with a dramatic stack of gold and diamond bangle bracelets on her left arm, a coordinating champagne-colored wrap, and her hair swept into a loose, romantic updo.
Earlier today Mrs. O hinted that she might turn to an Indian-American designer for her gown this evening, when she chose a skirt by another Indian-American designer, Rachel Roy, for the state dinner preview event. This is Mrs. O's first time publicly wearing a Naeem Khan design and what a debut! Mrs. O is bringing a modern brand of glamour to the White House, the likes of which we've not seen before.
For those who want to watch the coverage live, Politico has a livestream here. The White House will also live stream beginning at 8:15PM EST, here.
As a sidenote: Naeem Kahn is scheduled to be panelist on Larry King Live tonight at 9PM EST. Perhaps Larry will ask about the dress?
Update: We just watched Mr. Naeem Khan on Larry King Live. Of interest, both the designer's father and grandfather designed for Indian royalty in their careers. Mr. Khan relayed that he designed 3 or 4 gowns for the event, which were coordinated through Ikram Goldman in Chicago. The brief had been "Indian, chic, simple, but very glamorous." With that, Mr. Khan chose the color, embroidery, cut and all other aspects of the gowns. He called the moment of seeing the first lady in his design, "So joyous," continuing, "For me to be part of this historic occasion, being Indian, it is beyond amazing. It is an incredible moment for me."
Read more about the Naeem Khan's perspective (and the Halston influence beyond the state dinner dress) in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, here. Thanks denisegirl!
Official White House Photos by Pete Souza
Bochic, Naeem Khan
Reader Comments (246)
Awww. How sweet! Thanks for posting that 2nd photo Mrs.T. Such a cute couple.
Ditto to what Ari just said, that cute picture of the first couple is nice. No matter where they are they ever forget to acknoweldge their love for each other.
That explains why it looked bright silver as well as gold in the first photo I saw. This photo does not pick up the gleam and sparkle.
Looks like nude lace over satin, embroidered with silver sequins. Great.
Love, love, love the whole look from the hair, earrings and wrap. Home run.
She makes us very proud. Mrs O looks absolutely fabulous !!!!!!!
At first I thought what was the big deal about the dress, as it looks like someone at a well-dressed Oscar celebration but then I realized, that's why it is so amazing--she doesn't look First Lady like--ie, frumpy and unsexy. She looks glamorous and sexy, but appropriate for a First Lady. It says, "Yes I'm the First Lady, but I'm a woman, too. Love it. It's a great color on her--as usual. I'm unsure about the hair, which seems like a mohawk-like style, but maybe I'll get used to it. The bangles and shawl are amazing.
Oh, in the Introduction Ceremony with Mrs. Kaur, I loved the look that SoS Clinton gave Michelle Obama...She looked so proud of her in her orange brocade outfit...as if she was her mother watching her child do something well. It was really touching. It just showed me completely that the election acrimony is over--I knew it was already but her look of admiration and pride solidified it.
For those of you who missed footage of Mrs.O's entrance and want more details on the decorations and performances check out this MSNBC video .
You can really see the embellishment in the second photo. Incredible!
Beautiful dress; could have been fitted better, especially on the top.
man, this u see the president's broad smile? he's been looking down of late but tonight!!!! he knows his wife is rocking the dress. lol
Lol "nude" is such an interesting way to describe the color, especially since it isn't
"nude" in the context of the (fabulous!) woman wearing the dress.
Reminds me of how bandaids are supposed to be fleshtoned but they universally aren't.
She looks beautiful. Her hair is amazing - love this style. It's so soft and feminine. Those earrings are unbelievable. In a closeup photo they appear to have rubies along the edges and the top is a fleur de lis. Is there any way to find out who made the earrings? And, of course, the bracelets! Love the bangles!!!!
Love it!
Words fail.
I was so blown away by her hair I didn't pay attention to the dress. Menopause has killed my hair but I would love to try this updo.The dress is awesome but a bit snug around the bust line, although I have noticed that a lot of hollywood types have the same look. Is this something new? She's been working that body though in preparation for this. I am impressed. Is that sheer lace over a sheath. I am glad she choose this silhouette, it is her best look, always.
Mrs. O looks amazing! God Bless America!!!
Check out the Huffington Post's close up photo's of Mrs.O's jewelry and dress Here . Those earrings are beyond gorgeous and unique. Wow. I'm guessing Loree Rodkin because of the slightly gothic, medieval touches.
The WH livesteam is up and Mrs. O and Desiree didn't disappoint. Its just as stunning inside that tent as Mrs. O tonight. Beautiful!!!
Hey guys, let's all give a round of applause to Mrs.T and everyone who kept us tuned in tonight!. Thanks to everyone....you guys out-did yourselves. Clap, clap, clap (sound of a roaring round of applause)!
Hey, Whitehouse.gov/live is showing the inside of the tent right now. It's beautiful!
OK. One more time after looking at Huffpo's closeups. It is nude (and that is a color - pale, pale peachy beige) chiffon. All of the glittery part is silver sequins. Lots and lots of silver sequins. The shawl is more of the dress fabric without embellishment.
I like Huffpo's closeups of detail, jewelry, etc.
Just to echo most of the sentiments here - I think she looks fabulous...one of her better ensembles!!!
The tent design looks romantic.
The outdoor venue (I don't want to call it a tent because it's too grand) is spectacular. Just lovely. It looks like something out of a movie.
OMG!! Mrs. O looks ravishing!! WHAT A Great choice of designer!! Mrs. O has truly taken DIVERSITY to a different level!! Way to go Mrs. Obama!! I love you love you love!!!
The hair, the dress, everything is perfect!!
I bet no one guessed on Beige as a color of choice eh?
@Willet784: Oh my! I thought I was reading a bit much into the way HRC looked at MO... so thank you for saying this! HRC had such a wonderful look of pride while she watched MO. If anyone had told me it would be so after such a primary battle ... well, that is long gone (thankfully). I am very proud of my SOS, Sec. Clinton and I am proud of my FLOTUS@
That dress is stunning!!!!
Hair is fab.
POTUS needs a tailor, but FLOTUS makes up for it.
HuffPo has a few more pics one shows the bangles. Lovely.
She looks RADIANT!!! I am so happy right now!! Mr. O looks so handsome!!
The tent does look romantic, IVA.
I just saw them walk-in and they are TRULY AMERICAN ROYALTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WTF is Desiree Rogers wearing? Just because it's designer doesn't make it right. Robin Givhan was able to identify her dress as Comme de Garcon, a Japanese line known for it's avant garde designs, but come on. This is just completely unflattering and strange.
The stack of bangles is a nice Indian touch as well.
p.s., She looks stunning!
POTUS looks quite dashing thank you very much. He is Mrs. Obama's best accessory and she his.
Amazing!
Beautiful and stunning
Oh my gosh is that really the tent, jeeeeez so beautiful. So beautiful and intimate
Looks like desiree rogers decided to wear a set of roman blinds
Je'dore Mrs. Obama's dress OMG! She looks stunning in gold. By the grin on POTUS's face he agrees with us LOL. I'ld love to see a photo without the shawl...mmm mmm good.
LOL @ Ari, was thinking the same thing about Desiree WTH! When bad dress happens to a beautiful woman. Enough said!
OMG, she's gorgeous! I daresay that our President is looking pretty smug tonight. Must be because he's married to the most beautiful woman in the room!
A close-up
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/93364052
OH! MY! G_D! I could never have imagined such a fabulous look! Stunning! Regal! But more than that -- Divine. I think she looks like a Goddess. Tall, strong, sculpted, and with that fierce and edgy hair -- which I love. She's like a mythological creature.
I didn't see her first entrance, but caught just a glimpse of her entry to the dinner. The way the sequins reflected the light was absolutely stunning. Her every move in the intimate, magical ambiance created in that tent reflects the dimmed light, giving her an electricity that could not be missed.
I don't know if any of us won the wager on the color she would wear. I certainly missed. Rocky might have been closest with her suggestion of gold.
I've got to go swoon and digest all this beauty now. Have we ever been more proud of a First Lady? I don't think I have.
OMG, Desiree Rogers looks awful. She looks like she is about to go churn some butter!!!! OMG!!!! Talk about making the worst dressed look.
May I suggest Mrs T. you add some pics of other distinguished guest (i.e. Dr. Biden, Valerie Jarrett, those representing Indian organizations, etc.).
YOLA, you weren't reading too much into it at all. It looked very clear to me. She was passing the torch to Mrs. O with her eyes. SoS Clinton was so proud. You can tell she loves Mrs. O and is pulling for her. I remember the Inauguration when SoS Clinton saw Sasha and Malia in their J CrewCuts outfits and her face just lit up. She had this smile that said, "Oh my gosh, they are so gorgeous and adorable. How in the world did we not see them more during the campaign?" From then, I knew the hard feelings from the primaries were gone.
Am I the only one who loves Desiree Rogers dress? The "hidden" pearls (under the sheer top layer) are such an interesting touch. It's sort of a secretively elegant look.
HOT!!!!!that is all I have to say!
FLAWLESS
I love Naheem Khan, his work is beautiful, intricate and out of my price range but I have long admired his work, fabulous choices all around designer, dress, hair and accessories
One of my top 5 formal looks for Mrs. O
@jestina no she wore hoops that night
BOLLYWOOD BOMB SHELL!
Jai Ho! And victorious she is. There are no words, only music in my ears, seeing Mrs.O like this. Shock, awe and wonder - well I called the jewel tone, but who cares at this point.
Heavenly beauty. This is a debut like no other. Can ANYONE top this dress tonight.
Speechless...
I'm sorry, but Desiree Rogers' dress is abominable. A state dinner is not the time to try something new or avant-garde, especially when you are the Social Secretary. Everyone is going to want to meet the woman who made the arrangements--which are amazing (the purple flowers and the lighting are wonderful).
This is D. Rogers' night on the international stage and she should have stuck to something more traditional. Desiree Rogers is her own woman and I respect that but tonight she looks like a mummy with sagging breasts. She could have done so much better.
Naeem Khan just told Larry King that it took 40 people and 6 weeks to make the dress. It is silver thread sown on to silk and follows the skills learned from his father and grandfather. Amazing.
@ desertwind, you are not the only one who loves Desiree Rogers's dress but then again I loved FLOTUS's election night dress and her Wantanabe sweaters. I think Desiree looks fab.
I'm no prude but should we be using WTF on this blog........
Although I haven't read all the current postings, I would say that besides looking elegant, polished, flawless, etc....I, for one, must say the when I saw the first pix of Mrs. Obama the phrase that ran through my mind was "WOW, doesn't she look sexy"! Now, when was the last time anyone thought of our First Lady as sexy? What a beautiful woman she is, and she's smart, articulate, and maybe even wise. President Obama is one fortunate man, and we are one lucky nation....BRAVA MICHELLE!!!
It's all already been said, but I have to repeat the words myself. Mrs. O looks absolutely amazing, breathtaking, stunning, and, of course, beautiful!!!! I just can't stop looking at the second photo, especially. They radiate love!
I have been so excited about what MrsO would wear to their first state dinner. She really is impressive. She looks absolutely amazing!!!! Great choices all around. Beautiful!!!
Long time follower, rare commenter, and no fashionista , but I am fascinated by her and a great admirer. I too think she looks absolutely divine. A thought passed through my head as I was looking at the FLOTUS walk into the tent -- the silhouette of her hair is similar in shape to the turbans the Sikhs wear -- was this another nod to the culture of the honored guest?
That second photo is going up as my facebook profile pic, taking the spot of her glamour cover!
So Stunning!